12.15.2009

It was a cold October in 1994. My wife, my parents and I were in Paris on a vacation. When I read the paper one morning I discovered that our time in the city corresponded with the Fall Fashion shows being held, that year, at the Carousel de Louvre. I put my Contax film camera in a bag and headed over to see what there was to see. Security was tight and only photographers with passes were allowed inside the six large halls where non-stop shows were going on.

I didn't have any credentials for the shows and I was about to head back upstairs and wander around the city when I heard a familiar voice calling my name. It was an assistant art director from a large American magazine I had worked for from time to time. She asked which show I was covering. I told here my being there was totally coincidental and I wasn't shooting for anyone. She reached into her large bag and pulled out a press pass and a second "all stages" pass and handed them to me. "If you get anything fun you can send it to me when we all get home." She said. And then she disappeared into the crowd and was swallowed up in the line heading for the Lagerfeld venue.

I took my one camera and two lenses ( a 50mm 1.4 and a 135mm 2.8, both Zeiss) peeled ten rolls of tri-X out of their boxes and headed in to see what was what. I spent the afternoon shooting for fun. I hung out backstage at a few shows. I drank some Champagne with people celebrating the success of their individual efforts and I had fun. Thank goodness I thought to wear black.

All the photographers were patient, kind and professional. There's no real story here. Just a random memory triggered by a photo in a folder.

No one cared that my camera was a manual focus one. Nearly everyone else's was too. Amazing that so many great photographs were taken before the advent of so much automation and lightning fast feedback. More challenging? Less challenging? Maybe just different.

Curious to understand what makes a "style". I'm not sure I know. I know I like portraits that seem to connect with me. I'm less interesting in the technique than the context and less interested in the context than the content. I want to be interested by the implications of the captured moment.

It's been a tough year for most of my friends and long distance acquaintances. Some times a walk through the park is a good prescription for our mental health. Hope the holidays are stress free and happy for everyone.